Irish Red Setter Club

by Anneliese Weber (Austria) 

The first time when you decide to buy an Irish Setter. The second and more stressful time is when you are at your wits end and your bold prospect does not seem to be progressing towards excellence but after another pheasant or hare! The blood of his ancestors instruct the young dog; he shows the will to hunt, he shows drive and pace, nose, guts and style – the instruments are there, but they do not seem to unite into a balanced orchestra!Maybe it is not your dogs fault, perhaps it is you! The teacher, who cannot assess his pupil and does not act appropriately.

Here is John Nash’s reply from 1987, bearing in mind the breed from 23 years ago.It is a most honest description of the Irish Setter: 

“When I first became interested in Irish Setters and field trials, the average of the breed seemed to be fast, tireless workers, with very good brains, in fact the most cunning of the bird dogs, but they mostly, with some exceptions, lacked “point” and intensity on game. Many of them stood game with no style, and some were guilty of low head carriage. However, over the years, the breed has developed out of all proportions, mainly through selective breeding, and it now may safely be said, that a well bred Irish setter can hold his own with any of the breeds, and as their best eclipse them. A look at the trial results in Ireland, and indeed in England over the past seven or eight years will, alone, prove that. 

A properly bred Irish setter (the same phrase holds for the good pointers and English setters), is an easily trained, fast, good nosed dog. The inherent instinct to point game may not be as prepotent in the breed as in the English setter or the pointer, and consequently may need appropriate measures to get them pointing solidly. However, very many do point very naturally and back naturally, as well as any of the other breeds. They are mostly good, passionate hunters and have a more built in quartering instinct than the other breeds.

They develop a collie like cunningness which enables them to work out problems very quickly for themselves, and they are devoted and in fact it is rare to find one that is not prepared to hunt for his handler rather than himself.It is also rare to find an Irish setter given to false pointing or stickiness and reluctant to move into game. I would even say they are the most uncomplicated of all the breeds. I also find them most forgiving and they will suffer fools more gladly than the other breeds in that they are harder to completely ruin. I also consider them the most versatile breed, in that one can get a dog among the breed that can be successfully spanielled while not impairing his work in the grand manner. They have a greater natural aptitude to retrieve than Pointers or English Setters, I cannot speak for Gordons because I have never owned or trained one. 

To sum up, if the breed attracts you there is no reason why you shouldn’t be able to train one, and enjoy it to the full, but start with the right sort. The breed has not been as fortunate as the pointers and English setters or even the Gordons in having wealthy patrons who were in a position to really exert their influence on the breed, none the less they have been fortunate in that they have mostly enjoyed the patronage of the average shooting man in Ireland. And it is noticeable in any country were any particular breed is strongest, it is usually the breed most favoured by the ordinary shooting man of that country, which in the last analysis is indeed the breed´s greatest strength.”  

Magnificent sunshine greeted the attendees at the inaugural Irish Red Setter Club’s Open day in the beautiful surrounds of Birr Castle. The conference room had been decorated with handsome portraits and photographs of some famous red setters from the past both from the working and show lines. The back of the room offered club memorabilia including club plates, ties, badges, stickers and towels, managed by Siobhan Grace